


bedsheets and a morning rose

by nunaseaweed



Series: Don't Threaten Me With a Good Time [7]
Category: Keeper of the Lost Cities Series - Shannon Messenger
Genre: Adoption, M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-02-13
Updated: 2021-02-13
Packaged: 2021-03-13 03:48:45
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,335
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/29395764
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/nunaseaweed/pseuds/nunaseaweed
Summary: 'You know what the only thing that could make this better is?’ Keefe asked.Tam shook his head, wondering what his doof of a husband could be talking about.'A daughter.'
Relationships: Keefe Sencen/Tam Song
Series: Don't Threaten Me With a Good Time [7]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/2159292
Kudos: 1





	bedsheets and a morning rose

**Author's Note:**

> DISCLAIMER: I don’t own Keeper, I’m not that creative.  
> Notes:  
> -After Tam and Keefe get married (TAM SENCEN)  
> -takes place eight years after Chapter 18 (the next one)  
> -Roselyn is pronounced Raa-slyn  
> -WARNING: Homophobia (not too much, just memories)

Keefe woke up and rubbed his eyes. Sunlight was streaming through the window of the room, and onto the bed. All the furniture and walls were white, so the room was bright. 

He looked at the clock, 7:36 A.M., and chuckled to himself. His husband was usually up by 7:00 A.M., yet the fact that there was a sprawled leg across Keefe’s told him that Tam wasn’t awake. 

Keefe put his head back onto his pillow and sighed. Looking across their bedroom, he could see the drawings hung up on the walls, drawn by himself. Mostly of Tam and him, and of course just Tammy boy. They were all framed and hung up around the room, making the simple white worth it. One of his favorites was Tam drawn to look like an angel, but with no wings or halo or anything. Just him, but the way Keefe had seen him when he was in his coma. It was drawn eight years ago, started and finished the day he woke up from his coma.

That was the night everything fell into place. He didn’t have to hide anymore, from Ro, Sophie, Fitz, and everyone else. The only reason he told Ro he liked Sophie was because she knew something was up, and it was the only way to get her off his back. It spiraled into something Keefe had never meant it too.

Keefe had known he was gay since Exile. Of course he had called himself hot for ages, and never really saw anything in any girls, but meeting Tam put changed everything. It obviously wasn’t the first time he had thought of a boy as attractive, but it was the first time it meant something. He finally realized that the reason he never had a crush on girls was because he didn’t like them. After that revelation, he realized why whenever he was around Tam his stomach somersaulted, he liked him. It put his entire life in perspective, the way he had acted and the things he had thought since he was a child.

As soon as he figured it out, he was terrified. From a young age he always believed that people should love whomever they wanted, and that was one of the things his parents yelled at him for. It was horrible, the way they treated those people, the words they called them.  _ Defects. _ Keefe had vivid memories of the lectures he’d get every time he tried to defend the people. He gave up around the time he became friends with Fitz.

To find out he was gay, was horrifying. Keefe’s opoinins hadn’t changed since childhood, but his father’s hadn’t either. Although he hated his dad, he was still the one who let him live in his house and buy hair products. If it was anything else, Keefe would’ve laughed in his face and ran off to Everglen, but with the way Elvin society was, he wasn’t sure where he’d be safe. 

Most elves, especially the traditional ones, hated people were homosexual. Simple because it was wrong, by their standards. They always focused on strong children and perfect matches. The matchmaking system was horrible, it caused so many people to live their lives shunned by the rest of society, just because of someone they loved. Elves who were homosexual were considered bad matches, but had it worse because “It isn’t natural.” Apparently, to elves, nature always wanted a girl and a boy, but that wasn’t how it always was. That’s why they called them defects. 

Because of the need for hair products, Keefe kept to himself, forced himself to hate Tam, and convinced people he liked Sophie. It seemed to be a trend after all. When Ro showed up, he knew he was in trouble. The ogers hated homosexuals almost more than the elves did, and Ro was perceptive. So he told her that he liked Sophie, and he was a good enough actor for her to believe him. For everyone to believe him. He could’ve lost one of his best friends because of it, but he pushed along anyway because having all of his friends and shun him because of who he was was worse.

But he had heard everything when he was in the coma, about Tam being gay and liking him, Biana, Fitz and Dex accepting gay people. He knew from the start that Marella accepted them, and Linh was accepting to everybody. It gave him the strength to bring himself out of the coma, to stop hiding. When he woke up everything felt clearer, he could be who he was and no one would judge him. 

It was a great feeling, and it stayed with him forever.

Keefe usually woke up with Tam already out of the room, reaching his hand into the right side of the bed to be greeted with an empty depression in his husband’s pillow. There were few days when Keefe woke up first, and they were usually because they had stayed up all night. 

Keefe hated waking up alone. He’d frequently have nightmares about the day he came out to his dad. Lord Cassius had yelled at him, saying he was finally learning to be proud of him and he wasn’t worth it. Keefe endured it for almost ten minutes before Tam had shown up and yelled back. Fitz, Sophie, Marella, Linh, Biana, and Dex showed up moments later, all with something to say to his father. But the dreams would always end with Keefe’s mind breaking, and waking up alone made him think he went through it all for nothing. 

He had voiced these concerns to Tam a couple of days ago, the last time he had the nightmare. Tam had agreed to waking up with him, and had the last few days. The only problem was he was extremely hard to wake up. 

“Tam,” Keefe whispered. A low groan came in response. “Tammy,” this time a hand flew up and landed on Keefe’s nose, then inched its way down to cover his mouth. “Come on…” Keefe cooed. Tam grumbled and then brought himself closer to Keefe, wrapped an arm around his torso to match the leg across Keefe’s legs, and snuggled his head into Keefe’s neck. “It’s 7:38.”

“Can’t we just stay right here, together for a while? No one’s waiting on us, and I love you, so stay.” Tam’s word was final.

“Whatever you want hon,” Keefe smiled.

  * ❅──────✧❅✦❅✧──────❅•



“Why don’t I sleep on the right side of the bed tonight?” Keefe asked. He knew Tam would never agree to it, but he wanted to see his reaction anyway.

Tam abandoned opening the cabinet to get plates to whip around and glare at Keefe. “No.”

“But why not?”

“Because my side of the bed is my side of the bed. Mine. Not yours. Mine.”

Keefe chuckled to himself and flipped the pancake he was cooking. Sophie had introduced them to human food a while ago, along with a lot of other human things, and everyone in their group had adopted the habit of using them. They watched human movies regularly, translations made by Dex, and cooked human food. He slid his pancake onto the plate Tam had put beside the stove and followed him to the table.

As they ate, Tam opened a letter from the Councillors and read it aloud, “ _ To: Lord Sencen, _ They need to be more specific about that.”

“We’ll tell Marella, she is the great and mighty Councillor after all,” Keefe imitated. Marella had become the youngest elf to become a councillor a couple of years ago, and had actually forgotten to tell them about it. Now they all joked that she was full of herself, although they knew she had genuinely forgotten. “What’s it about?”

“It’s a bunch of crap about some new Foxfire teacher being introduced to the school, nothing that matters.”

Tam continued eating and Keefe admired him. He still had his silver bangs, despite Keefe’s complaints. He looked just the same as eight years ago, but had actually changed a lot, as a person does over the years.

“What?” Tam asked, noticing Keefe’s staring.

“Oh nothing. I love you.”

“Okay,” Tam held the word before wondering, “Are you planning something?”

Keefe thought about it, he couldn’t say he had just planned it, since he had been thinking about it for a while. “Well we have been married for a little over a year, and every moment with you is the best-”

Tam laughed, “You’re so cheesy,”

“You know what the only thing that could make this better is?” Keefe asked. 

Tam shook his head, wondering what his doof of a husband could be talking about. 

“A daughter.”

Tam dropped the fork he had been holding onto his pancake. For a moment he didn’t say anything, and right before Keefe began rambling about why they should get a kid he spoke, “Yes.”

Keefe cut himself off, and stared, “Wait, did you just say yes?”

“Absolutely. Linh’s always been a kid fanatic and, I guess it rubs off.”

The smile Keefe gave was practically blinding. “Are we going to have a kid?”

Tam smiled back, “Yes Keefe, we’re getting a daughter.”

Keefe jumped out of his chair and ran across the small circular table to hug his husband. “I love you so much! I was gonna ask a month ago but I didn’t, you’re the best!” he squealed like a child. Tam just smiled and laughed.

After breakfast, Tam suggested they go to the orphanage that day, since they had nothing to do. Keefe asked Biana and Dex to come with them, because Biana was the first person he told about wanting a kid, and she made him promise she would bring him along.

When they were all ready, they lightleaped to the orphanage, and told the woman at the front desk why they were there. She nodded politely and led them into the room with about a dozen infants, none over nine months, who were sleeping quietly in their cribs. This was the only orphanage for elves in the world, since elves always kept their kids and the ones that ended up here were ones whose parents died at birth. They were all unnamed. 

Keefe walked over to the girls side and peered into their cribs. Tam did the same, they both knew that there would be one that just stood out to them. Biana flountered along cooing at the children with Dex at her heels, also amdiring the kids. 

Keefe passed by a girl with a little tuft of rich auburn hair. He backtracked, and waved Tam over. As if sensing the presence of others, the little girl, seven months old, opened her eyes. A startlingly deep ocean blue stared back at them. It was funny, how her eyes resembled the depths of the sea which have seen so much yet, she herself was only a child that wouldn't even remember this part of her life. Her small little hands reached up at the boys, grasping at thin air.

_ She’s the one. _ It seemed to be a collective thought as Tam played with her fingers and Keefe stroked her hair. Dex nudged Biana, who was fawning over a baby boy at the other side of the room, and the two smiled at the couple who was mesmerized by the child. Dex and Biana slowly inched their way over and stood a couple of feet away from them.

Grinning at his husband, Keefe nodded at the small girl. Tam smiled, they both knew what the other was thinking. They had found their daughter.

“I see you got her,” Biana spoke quietly.

“What are you going to name her?” Dex added.

Keefe said, “Rose,” as Tam said “Violet,” and Biana said “Linda.” 

Dex looked at her. “Hey it was just a suggestion, she looks like a Linda to me,” she defended.

Tam nodded, “I can see that.”

“How do we choose? Dang, baby named is not as easy as it seems,” Keefe complained.

“Don’t choose then. Combine them,” Dex offered. “Rose Vi- Vilinda Sencen”

Tam thought about it before saying, “Roselyn Vilinda Sencen.”

Keefe nodded, “But the first i in Vilinda should be a y.”

Dex smiled, “See easy.”

Biana giggled., “It’s really not, but I guess it's a good thing I married you.”

“You- You guess?” Dex stuttered.

Biana just laughed and kissed his cheek. She turned toward the boys, who had gone back to playing with Roselyn. “Want me to get the desk lady?” 

Tam absentmindedly nodded.

She disappeared and came back with the woman and a bunch of forms, which Tam and Keefe quickly filled out. By 4:18 P.M., they were home. With a daughter.

They called over all their friends for a dinner party and introduced Roselyn Vylinda Sencen. Biana had dragged Tam shopping for baby clothes as soon as she could, and they had come back with a cart full of mini Biana-like outfits. Roselyn really seemed to like them though. At the party, Sophie had called Edaline, a known baby fanatic, and she had immediately conjured over a cradle, saying they could use it until they actually got all the baby furniture.

Yes, it was an impulse decision to do it all in one day, but it was one that they made, and didn’t regret. With Roselyn - who Keefe had started calling Rosey and Tam called Tulip - asleep in the corner of their bedroom, Tam and Keefe got ready for bed.

“I miss not having diapers on the top of the dresser,” Tam stated.

“Don’t start complaining already, it hasn’t even been a day,” Keefe chided.

Tam sighed, “I’m not complaining, but seriously we need to make a nursery tomorrow, okay?”

Keefe nodded and Tam curled up next to him. “You don’t regret it do you?” Keefe asked innocently.

Tam turned his head up and planted a loving his on his husband’s lips. “No, and I never will.”

“This is perfect.”


End file.
